1955 American producer and playwright John Golden dies at age 81. First an actor and then a writer, Golden eventually found success as the producer of such plays as The First Year and Seventh Heaven. A Broadway house bearing his name serves as a memorial.

1969 Oh! Calcutta! opens at the Eden Theater in New York. The adult-oriented review boasts a mostly-nude cast performing skits by the likes of John Lennon, Samuel Beckett, and Sam Shepard. While the production has a long and successful run, it is the 1976 revival that enters the history books as one of the longest-running musicals of all time, with 5,969 performances.

1980 After playing 12 performances at Broadway's Morosco Theatre, Billy Bishop Goes to War transfers to Off-Broadway's Theatre de Lys. The musical, written and composed by John Gray in collaboration with Eric Peterson, was inspired by the book Winged Warfare, in which a young pilot named Billy Bishop recounts his service during World War I.

1999 Audiences attending the New York Shakespeare Festival's first preview of The Taming of the Shrew starring Allison Janney at Central Park's Delacorte Theater also enjoy its $4.35 million renovation. Changes include traps in the stage, re-built walkways under the seating for the actors, streamlined concession areas, new cedar siding, and new bleachers and seating.